Supriya Ghosh (Editor)

List of contestants from the UK national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit

Eurovision: You Decide is the current name of the BBC TV show broadcast to select the United Kingdom's entry into the Eurovision Song Contest.

Contents

Shows of similar formats have previously gone under several other names, including Festival Of British Popular Songs, Eurovision Song Contest British Final, A Song For Europe, The Great British Song Contest, Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up and Eurovision: Your Decision. In 2011 the selection process was replaced by an internal BBC decision, but this process ended after 2015 with a revival of a national final for 2016 under a new name.

This page lists the contestants for each year of the show; the winners of the contest are in bold-italics.

Competition

In 1957, 1959 and 1960, there were a series of televised heats prior to the final.

Postcard voting was used to choose the winner from 1965–1975. This had to be abandoned in 1971 due to a postal strike, with regional juries, made up of ordinary members of the public selecting the winner. Juries did the job from 1957–1964 and from 1976–1987. From 1988 onwards, televoting has been organized ostensibly to choose the winner, although this result wasn't always followed.

1957
Tuesday, 12 February. The King's Theatre Hammersmith, London.
Host: David Jacobs
Each song was performed by two different artists
Voting: 10 regional juries of 12 members with 1 vote each, located in Belfast, Newcastle, Bangor, Edinburgh, Manchester, Nottingham, Cardiff, Birmingham, Glasgow & London.

~ Eliminated in one of three televised heats (Tuesday, 22 January, Tuesday, 29 January & Tuesday, 5 February).

1958 Not Held. No UK Entry at Eurovision Song Contest

Eurovision Song Contest British Final (1959–1960)

1959
Saturday, 7 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: Pete Murray
Voting: 7 regional juries from South of England, English Midlands, Northern England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales & West of England, with 14 persons in each jury.

~ Eliminated in one of two televised heats (Monday, 2 February & Thursday, 5 February).

1960
Saturday, 6 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: David Jacobs
Voting: 7 Regional Juries, with 15 people in each jury. Juries: South Of England, English Midlands, North of England, Scotland, Wales, West of England and Northern Ireland.

~ Eliminated in one of two televised heats (Tuesday, 2 February & Thursday, 4 February).

A Song For Europe (1961–1995)

1961
Wednesday, 15 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Hostess: Katie Boyle
Voting: 12 Regional Juries of 10 jurors with 1 vote each, located in Aberdeen, Glasgow, Belfast, Leeds, Bangor, Manchester, Norwich, Birmingham, Cardiff, London, Bristol & Southampton.

1962
Sunday, 11 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: David Jacobs
Voting: 14 Regional Juries in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Belfast, Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester, Nottingham, Birmingham, Cardiff, London, Plymouth, Southampton and Bristol.

1963
Saturday, 23 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: David Jacobs
Voting: 16 Regional Juries in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Belfast, Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester, Nottingham, Norwich, Birmingham, Cardiff, London North, London South, Plymouth, Southampton & Bristol. 12 persons in each jury, awarding 3 points to their favourite, 2 points to the second and 1 point to the third.

1964
Friday, 7 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: David Jacobs
All Songs Performed by Matt Monro
Voting: 16 Regional Juries.

1965
Friday, 29 January. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: David Jacobs
All Songs Performed by Kathy Kirby on "The Kathy Kirby Show"
Result broadcast Friday, 12 February.
Voting: Viewers cast votes via postcard for their favourite song.

1966
Thursday, 27 January. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: David Jacobs
All Songs Performed by Kenneth McKellar on "Kenneth McKellar's Song For Everyone" (BBC1) and "The Light Programme" (BBC Radio)
Result broadcast Thursday, 3 February.
Voting: Viewers cast votes via postcard for their favourite song.

1967
Saturday, 25 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: Rolf Harris
All Songs Performed by Sandie Shaw on "The Rolf Harris Show"
Result broadcast Saturday, 4 March.
Voting: Viewers cast votes via postcard for their favourite song.

1968
Tuesday, 5 March. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Hostess: Cilla Black
All Songs Performed by Cliff Richard on "Cilla"
Result broadcast Tuesday, 12 March.
Voting: Viewers cast votes via postcard for their favourite song.

1969
Saturday, 22 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: Michael Aspel
All Songs Performed by Lulu on "Happening For Lulu"
Result broadcast Saturday, 1 March.
Voting: Viewers cast votes via postcard for their favourite song.

1970
Saturday, 7 March. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: Cliff Richard
All Songs Performed by Mary Hopkin on "It's Cliff Richard!"
Result broadcast Saturday, 14 March.
Voting: Viewers cast votes via postcard for their favourite song.

1971
Saturday, 20 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: Cliff Richard
All Songs Performed by Clodagh Rodgers on "It's Cliff Richard!" (BBC1) and "The Acker Bilk Show" (BBC Radio 2)
Result broadcast Saturday, 27 February.
Voting: 8 Regional Juries in Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, London, Manchester & Norwich, each with 10 jurors who could award 1 vote to their favourite song.

1972
Saturday, 12 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: Cliff Richard
All Songs Performed by The New Seekers on "It's Cliff Richard!" (BBC1) and "Pete Murray's Open House" (BBC Radio 2)
Result broadcast Saturday, 19 February.
Voting: Viewers cast votes via postcard for their favourite song.

1973
Saturday, 24 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Hostess: Cilla Black
All Songs Performed by Cliff Richard on "Cilla" (BBC1) and "Pete Murray's Open House" (BBC Radio 2)
Result broadcast Saturday, 3 March.
Voting: Viewers cast votes via postcard for their favourite song.

1974
Saturday, 23 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: Jimmy Savile
All Songs Performed by Olivia Newton-John on "Clunk, Click... As It Happens" (BBC1) and "Pete Murray's Open House" (BBC Radio 2)
Result broadcast Saturday, 2 March.
Voting: Viewers cast votes via postcard for their favourite song.

1975
Saturday, 15 February. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Hostess: Lulu
All Songs Performed by The Shadows on "Lulu" (BBC1) and "Pete Murray's Open House" (BBC Radio 2)
Result broadcast Saturday, 22 February.
Voting: Viewers cast votes via postcard for their favourite song.

1976
Wednesday, 25 February. The Royal Albert Hall, London.
Host: Michael Aspel
Voting: 14 Regional Juries located in Bristol, Bangor, Leeds, Norwich, Newcastle, Aberdeen, Birmingham, Manchester, Belfast, Cardiff, Plymouth, Glasgow, Southampton and London. Each jury ranked the songs 1-12, awarding 12 points for their favourite down to 1 point for their least preferred.

1977
Wednesday, 9 March. The New London Theatre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 14 Regional Juries located in Belfast, Bristol, Aberdeen, Bangor, Leeds, London, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Norwich, Newcastle, Manchester, Plymouth and Southampton. Each jury ranked the songs 1-12, awarding 12 points for their favourite down to 1 point for their least preferred.
(Show not televised due to strike action)

1978
Friday, 31 March. The Royal Albert Hall, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 14 Regional Juries located in Belfast, Bristol, Aberdeen, Bangor, Leeds, London, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Norwich, Newcastle, Manchester, Plymouth and Southampton. Each jury ranked the songs 1-12, awarding 12 points for their favourite down to 1 point for their least preferred.

1979
Thursday, 8 March. The Royal Albert Hall, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 14 Regional Juries located in Belfast, Bristol, Aberdeen, Bangor, Leeds, London, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Norwich, Newcastle, Manchester, Plymouth and Southampton. Each jury ranked the songs 1-12, awarding 12 points for their favourite down to 1 point for their least preferred based on audio recordings of the songs. At the time, Manchester's votes were not included in the final tally as the jury could not be contacted and songs 6 & 12 were declared joint 2nd. The scores and places were adjusted later once the Manchester scores had been confirmed.
(Show abandoned due to strike action)

1980
Wednesday, 26 March. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 14 Regional Juries located in Belfast, Bristol, Aberdeen, Bangor, Leeds, London, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Norwich, Newcastle, Manchester, Plymouth and Southampton. Each jury ranked the songs 1-12, awarding 12 points for their favourite down to 1 point for their least preferred. Each jury then awarded 1 vote for the top two songs to break a tie.

1981
Wednesday, 11 March. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 7 Regional Juries located in Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Belfast, Edinburgh, London and Bristol. Juries ranked the songs internally and awarded 15 points to their favourite, 12 to the second, 10 to the third, 9 to the fourth, 8 to the fifth, 7 to the sixth, 6 to the seventh and 5 to their least preferred.

1982
Wednesday, 24 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 7 Regional Juries located in Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Belfast, Edinburgh, London and Bristol. Juries ranked the songs internally and awarded 15 points to their favourite, 12 to the second, 10 to the third, 9 to the fourth, 8 to the fifth, 7 to the sixth, 6 to the seventh and 5 to their least preferred.

1983
Thursday, 24 March. BBC Television Theatre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 8 Regional Juries located in Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Belfast, Edinburgh, London, Norwich and Bristol. Juries ranked the songs internally and awarded 15 points to their favourite, 12 to the second, 10 to the third, 9 to the fourth, 8 to the fifth, 7 to the sixth, 6 to the seventh and 5 to their least preferred.

1984
Wednesday, 4 April. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 8 Regional Juries located in Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Belfast, Edinburgh, London, Norwich and Bristol. Juries ranked the songs internally and awarded 15 points to their favourite, 12 to the second, 10 to the third, 9 to the fourth, 8 to the fifth, 7 to the sixth, 6 to the seventh and 5 to their least preferred.

1985
Friday, 5 April. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 9 Regional Juries located in Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Belfast, Edinburgh, London, Norwich, Plymouth and Bristol. Juries ranked the songs internally and awarded 15 points to their favourite, 12 to the second, 10 to the third, 9 to the fourth, 8 to the fifth, 7 to the sixth, 6 to the seventh and 5 to their least preferred.

1986
Wednesday, 2 April. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 11 Regional Juries located in Leeds, Newcastle, Plymouth, Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Belfast, Edinburgh, London, Norwich and Bristol. Juries ranked the songs internally and awarded 15 points to their favourite, 12 to the second, 10 to the third, 9 to the fourth, 8 to the fifth, 7 to the sixth, 6 to the seventh and 5 to their least preferred. The final scores accord with the announced scores during the broadcast, whereas the scoreboard used in the telecast was incorrect due to a technical issue.

1987
Friday, 10 April. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: 9 Regional Juries located in Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Belfast, Edinburgh, London, Norwich, Newcastle and Bristol. Juries ranked the songs internally and awarded 15 points to their favourite, 12 to the second, 10 to the third, 9 to the fourth, 8 to the fifth, 7 to the sixth, 6 to the seventh, 5 to the eighth, 3 to the ninth and 1 to their least preferred.

1988
Friday, 25 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
With guest commentators: Gloria Hunniford, Bruce Welch, Mike Batt & George Martin
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

1989
Friday, 24 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
With guest commentators: Lulu, Deke Arlon, Leslie Bricusse & Gary Davies
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

1990
Friday, 30 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
With guest commentators: Gloria Hunniford, Cathy McGowan, Tim Rice & Carl Davis
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

1991
Friday, 29 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

1992
Friday, 3 April. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
All Songs Performed by Michael Ball
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

1993
Friday, 9 April. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
All Songs Performed by Sonia
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

1994
Friday, 18 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
With guest commentators: Richard O'Brien & Jonathan King
All Songs Performed by Frances Ruffelle
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

1995
Friday, 31 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan with Mark Goodier presenting a Top of the Pops preview show
With guest commentators: Tony Mortimer, Ian Dury, Cheryl Baker, Mike Read, Let Loose, Jonathan King, Scarlet & Bruno Brookes
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

The Great British Song Contest (1996–1999)

1996
Friday, 8 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

~ Eliminated in a televised heat hosted by Nicky Campbell.

1997
Sunday, 9 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Dale Winton
Result broadcast Saturday, 15 March.
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

* Eliminated in a radio only heat hosted by Terry Wogan & Ken Bruce.

1998
Sunday, 15 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Result broadcast Saturday, 21 March.
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

* Eliminated in a radio only heat hosted by Terry Wogan & Ken Bruce.

1999
Sunday, 7 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Hostess: Ulrika Jonsson
Result broadcast Friday, 12 March.
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

* Eliminated in a radio only heat hosted by Terry Wogan & Ken Bruce.

A Song For Europe (2000–2003)

2000
Sunday, 20 February. Elstree Studios, Elstree.
Hostess: Katy Hill
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

* Eliminated in a radio only heat hosted by Terry Wogan & Ken Bruce.

2001
Sunday, 11 March. Elstree Studios, Elstree.
Hostess: Katy Hill
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

* Eliminated in a radio only heat hosted by Terry Wogan & Ken Bruce.

2002
Sunday, 3 March. Elstree Studios, Elstree.
Hosts: Christopher Price & Claire Sweeney
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song.

* Eliminated in a radio only heat hosted by Terry Wogan & Ken Bruce.

2003
Sunday, 2 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Terry Wogan
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song. The votes were then divided into 6 regions: Scotland, Southern England, Northern Ireland, English Midlands, Northern England and Wales, with 12 points given to the highest scoring song in each region, 10 to the second, 9 to the third and 0 to the fourth placed song.

* Eliminated in a radio only heat hosted by Terry Wogan & Ken Bruce.
"Now And Forever" was performed in the radio only semi final by Esther Hart and was titled "Wait For The Moment". Hart withdrew when she qualified for the Dutch National Final. Her replacement was the group 'United Colours of Sound', who also withdrew before the televised final; being replaced in turn by Simon Chapman. Mimi is better known as Marie Kevan

Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up! (2004–2007)

2004
Saturday, 28 February. BBC Television Centre, London.
Hosts: Terry Wogan & Gaby Roslin with Paddy O'Connell on BBC Three
With Panellists: Carrie Grant, Harry Hill & Lorraine Kelly
 Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song. The votes were then divided into 7 regions: South West England, Wales, Northern Ireland, English Midlands, South East England, Northern England and Scotland, with 12 points given to the highest scoring song in each region, 8 to the second, 6 to the third, 4 to the fourth, 2 to the fifth and 0 to the lowest ranked song. Votes given by SMS (regardless of location) were separately allocated as a percentage of the vote received and added to the regional scores.

2005
Saturday, 5 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Hosts: Terry Wogan & Natasha Kaplinsky
With Panellists: Jonathan Ross, Bruno Tonioli, Paddy O'Connell & Natalie Cassidy
 Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song. The votes were then divided into 8 regions: South West England, South East England, Wales, Northern Ireland, English Midlands, Northern England, Scotland and any votes cast via the Internet (regardless of location), with 12 points given to the highest scoring song in each region, 8 to the second, 6 to the third, 4 to the fourth and 2 to the lowest ranked song. Votes given by SMS were separately allocated as a percentage of the vote received and added to the regional scores.

2006
Saturday, 4 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Hosts: Terry Wogan & Natasha Kaplinsky
With Panellists: Jonathan Ross, Bruno Tonioli, Fearne Cotton & Kelly Osbourne
 Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite song. The votes were then divided into 8 regions: Northern England, South East England, Scotland, English Midlands, Northern Ireland, Wales, South West England and any votes cast via the Internet (regardless of location), with 12 points given to the highest scoring song in each region, 8 to the second, 6 to the third, 4 to the fourth, 2 to the fifth and 0 to the lowest ranked song. Votes given by SMS were separately allocated as a percentage of the vote received and added to the regional scores.

2007
Saturday, 17 March. Maidstone Studios, Maidstone, Kent.
Hosts: Terry Wogan & Fearne Cotton
With Panellists: John Barrowman & Mel Giedroyc
 Voting: Viewers voted by phone for their favourite song. Following an initial round of voting, the top two songs were performed again and voted on a second time. No details of the scores were given.

Eurovision: Your Decision (2008)

2008
Saturday, 1 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Hosts: Terry Wogan & Claudia Winkleman
With Panellists/Judges: John Barrowman & Carrie Grant
Voting: LoveShy, Rob McVeigh and Andy Abraham were eliminated by judges John Barrowman & Carrie Grant. Andy Abraham was then 'saved' by Terry Wogan and reinstated. Viewers voted by phone for their favourite of the four remaining songs. Following an initial round of voting, the top two songs were performed again and voted on a second time. No details of the scores were given.

Eurovision: Your Country Needs You (2009–2010)

2009
Saturday, 31 January. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Graham Norton
With Panellists: Andrew Lloyd Webber, Lulu, Diane Warren, Duncan James, Arlene Phillips, Emma Bunton & Alesha Dixon
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite act each week. The bottom 2 acts were then judged by Andrew Lloyd Webber who chose to 'save' one of the 2. On the final show, viewers voted by telephone for their favourite of the three remaining acts. No details of the scoring was given.

2010
Friday, 12 March. BBC Television Centre, London.
Host: Graham Norton
With Judge: Pete Waterman and Panellists: Bruno Tonioli, Jade Ewen & Mike Stock
Voting: Three singing acts - Miss Fitz, Uni5 and Karen Harding - were eliminated by judge Pete Waterman. Viewers voted by telephone for their favourite of the three remaining acts. No details of the scoring was given.

Internal selection (2011–2015)

There was no televised national selection procedure for the UK Eurovision entrant from 2011 to 2015.

2011
Blue were selected to represent Britain in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 internally by the BBC, with the song "I Can", written by Duncan James, Lee Ryan, Ciaron Bell, Ben Collier, Ian Hope, Liam Keenan and 'StarSign'. In place of a national final, a one-hour documentary following the groups preparations for Germany, entitled Eurovision: Your Country Needs Blue was broadcast by BBC One on 16 April 2011.

2012
Engelbert Humperdinck was selected internally by the BBC to perform "Love Will Set You Free". The song was written by Grammy award-winning producer Martin Terefe and Ivor Novello winner Sacha Skarbek, who co-wrote the James Blunt hit "You're Beautiful".

2013
An internal selection followed again in 2013, with Bonnie Tyler being chosen to represent the UK with the song "Believe In Me", written and composed by Desmond Child, Lauren Christy and Chris Braide.

2014
Another internal selection followed in 2014, with Molly being chosen to represent the UK with the song "Children of the Universe", co-written by herself and Swedish producer Anders Hansson. However, Smitten-Downes was a relatively unknown artist who was discovered through the BBC Introducing platform.

2015
A fifth internal selection took place in 2015, although the BBC accepted submissions from the public and song writing community. Electro Velvet were chosen to represent the UK with the song "Still In Love With You", co-written by Adrian Bax White and David Mindel, who had written many previous songs for the UK heats, his best result being two joint 2nd songs in 1982.

Eurovision: You Decide (2016–)

2016
Friday, 26 February. The O2 Forum, Kentish Town, London
Hostess: Mel Giedroyc
With Panellists: Carrie Grant, Katrina Leskanich & Jay Revell
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone and/or online for their favourite song. No details of the scores or places were given.

2017
Friday, 27 January. Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith, London
Hostess: Mel Giedroyc
With Panellists: Bruno Tonioli, Sophie Ellis-Bextor & CeCe Sammy
Voting: Viewers voted by telephone and/or online for their favourite song. The panel of experts and a jury also voted during the show. No details of the scores or places were given.

UK singles chart successes

Only tracks that have appeared in the officially recognised Top 50 (to 1978), Top 75 (to 2012) and Top 100 (from 2012) are included

* Technically not a hit as the UK chart only officially recorded a Top 75 for singles at the time. The positions 76–100 at this time were only for releases that had not yet appeared in the Top 75, but were 'bubbling under' the Top 75.

From 1964 to 1975, the runner up in the UK heat was featured as the B-side of the winning single (both runners-up in 1971). The remaining two songs from 1973 were on the B-side of "Help It Along/Tomorrow Rising" in 1973. A cover version of "Songs Of Praise" from the 1972 contest was featured as the B-side of "Dear Elaine", a #18 hit in 1973 for the song's composer, Roy Wood.

(Top Ten hits in bold. No.1s in bold italics)

UK extended play chart successes

EP chart discontinued after 1967
Top Ten hits in Bold.

Broadcast

  • From 1964–1975, The Song For Europe programme was pre-recorded, often several weeks in advance. The result was typically broadcast one week after each Song For Europe programme.
  • From 1988–1991, 1995, and from 2004–2008 the result was broadcast in a separate programme, shown later the same night as the performances.
  • From 1992–1994 the programme was again pre-recorded, but the result show was live and broadcast the same night.
  • From 1997–1998 the results were announced the next Saturday after the final and on the following Friday in 1999.
  • From 1957–1960, there were various televised semi-finals ahead of the UK final for A Song For Europe. This was reintroduced in 1996, with a preliminary round of voting to eliminate 4 of the 8 songs. This was televised in 1996 but switched to radio from 1997–2003.

    • Trivia

  • According to John Kennedy O'Connor's The Eurovision Song Contest - The Official History, the selection of Clodagh Rodgers in 1971 was due in part at nervousness within the BBC as to what reception the UK entrant would receive on stage in Dublin at the Eurovision final due to the unrest in Northern Ireland at the time.
  • Lita Roza, Anne Shelton, Ronnie Hilton, Craig Douglas, Ricky Valance, Sandie Shaw, Cliff Richard, Mary Hopkin, The New Seekers/Lyn Paul, The Shadows, Frank Ifield, The Foundations, Sweet Sensation, Carl Wayne (of The Move), Alvin Stardust, Sonia, Anthony Costa (of Blue), Brian Harvey (of East 17), Liz McClarnon (of Atomic Kitten), Blue, Engelbert Humperdinck and Bonnie Tyler had all enjoyed a number one UK single prior to putting themselves forward for Eurovision.
  • Sandie Shaw, Cliff Richard, Brotherhood Of Man, Bucks Fizz and Gina G are the only acts to take their song from the UK final to number one in the UK singles chart.
  • Only Frank Ifield, Cliff Richard, Lulu, The New Seekers, Olivia Newton-John, Brotherhood Of Man, Tony Christie and Bucks Fizz have been able to reach the pinnacle of the top of the UK singles chart after appearing in the contest.
  • Polly Brown is the only artist in a multi-artist final to perform two songs. She appeared as a soloist and as one half of Sweet Dreams in the 1976 competition, finishing 10th and 4th respectively. Catherine Porter had two songs in the 2000 competition, but only one reached the televised final.
  • The Sweet Dreams who placed 4th in 1976 are no relation to the Sweet Dreams that won the contest in 1983. The first is a male/female duo, the second is a trio of two girls and one boy. Carrie Grant who works extensively on British TV as a voice coach was a member of the Sweet Dreams trio.
  • The Pearls, a female quartet formed specifically for the 1989 contest are no relation to The Pearls, a female duo who had some minor chart hits in the early 1970s. Similarly, Joanne Castle, a female soloist who performed under the name 'Christie' in the 1991 contest, is no relation to the male group Christie that topped the UK charts with the song Yellow River.
  • Ronnie Carroll, Cliff Richard, Cheryl Baker and Sally-Ann Triplett are the only singers to win the A Song For Europe contest twice. In Cliff's case, he was only subjected to a song selection process and was already assured of the place in Eurovision. Baker was a member of Co-Co in 1978 and Bucks Fizz in 1981. In addition, Baker was part of Co-Co in 1976 and The Main Event in 1980. Triplett was part of Prima Donna in 1980 and Bardo in 1982.
  • Sally-Ann Triplett is the only singer to win the contest at all attempts.
  • Other singers who have won the A Song For Europe contest and yet came back another time were Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson, Bryan Johnson, Lyn Paul of The New Seekers and Gina G. Bobby McVay, the lead singer of 1983 winning group Sweet Dreams had entered the contest in 1982 as the lead singer of Lovin' Feeling.
  • Terry Wogan has hosted the contest more times than any other presenter. Together with Katie Boyle and Ulrika Jonsson, he also hosted the Eurovision Song Contest itself.
  • Cilla Black hosted both the 1968 and 1973 contests when the show was a segment of her BBC1 variety series. Black was the original choice to sing the UK entry in 1968, but turned it down as she felt it unlikely the UK could score back-to-back wins. She also turned down the chance in 1970 as she was expecting her first child. Other singers who were reported to have turned down the invitation in the 1970s include Slade, Peters and Lee and, in the 1990s, Bonnie Tyler and Elaine Paige. Tyler finally represented the UK in 2013.
  • When Belle & The Devotions were booed from the stage at Eurovision 1984, the BBC wanted to revert to inviting one singer to perform all the songs in the A Song For Europe contest for 1985. After Bonnie Tyler was unavailable, Lena Zavaroni was approached by the BBC. This move was blocked by the Music Publishers Association, who preferred to let the writers choose their own performers. In the end, for 1985, only soloists or duets were permitted to take part - no "made for Eurovision" acts - with songwriters limited to two entries each. This rule was only in place for one year.
  • Malcolm Roberts tried to represent the UK in 1991, having previously represented Luxembourg at Eurovision in 1985. Katrina Leskanich won Eurovision in 1997 for the UK and later attempted to represent Sweden. Nanne Gronvall represented Sweden in 1996 with the group One More Time before attempting to represent the UK in 2001. Simon Foster (aka Dan Duskey) represented Ireland in the 1982 Eurovision final as part of The Duskeys, before leading the group Palace (as Michael Palace) in the 1986 A Song For Europe contest. Ray Caruana, the lead singer of Live Report who represented the UK at Eurovision in 1989, later tried to represent Malta in the 1994 contest, but failed to win the Maltese heat.
  • Songs that failed to make the UK final but still went on to be hits include "Even The Bad Times Are Good". This was entered for Sandie Shaw in 1967 but went on to reach #4 for The Tremeloes, as did 1968 reject "Hello World", which reached #14. "Turn On The Sun" was turned down for Mary Hopkin in 1970 but later became identified with Nana Mouskouri. Likewise in 1971, "Something Old, Something New" failed to make Clodagh Rodgers' final six but was released by The Fantastics, reaching #9. It has been rumoured that 1984 chart-topper "I Should Have Known Better" by Jim Diamond had failed to be short-listed for A Song for Europe, as had 1986 hit "Touch Me (I Want Your Body)" by Samantha Fox. Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber and Sir Tim Rice submitted a song for the 1969 contest, "Try It And See", which was rejected. It was later re-written and became "King Herod's Song" in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar. Lloyd Webber returned to compose the 2009 UK entry in collaboration with Diane Warren.

    • References

    List of contestants from the UK national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA


    Similar Topics